i never heard anything in all the years of them renting this as being a benefit to the marina district and this really upsets me. thank you for allowing me to speak. >> thank you. next speaker, please. >> good afternoon. my name is sharon hefsky and i have lived in the marina for 36 year, i am in support of my neighborhood small pet stores whose expert and personalized service i have enjoyed and which i find invaluable, and so i'm here to see that they are afforded protection. thank you. >> thank you. >> good afternoon, commissioner, michael william

s, 40 year resident, i have a fair amount of experience now in doing assessments on things like the relationships of formula retail use. two small business in close proximity, i just finished 400 hours on lombard street and i conducted 234 discussions with business and property owners and as some of you know, i do that very well, it takes me a long time. along with that, i did 13 hours of traffic studies on lombard and i found 2600 cars per hour plus going by every hour and i went down to chest nut or to webster and buchanan and the other side streets out there all the way to divisadero and see how many cars went in there and turned left on chest nut, none, 2%, 3% maybe maximum. now, back in june of last year,

in june, 2012, i set out on my own without compensation on my own to explore the lombard corridor and find out what i could about the problems that it had, do some findings and get my own assessments from a sampling of about 17 bids owners, that ended up 234 and 400 hours by the time i got done, what i discovered is that the relationship of the formula retail use and the union street mcd were appropriate and balanced, that the relationship of formula retail use to small business in small proximity were also balanced, but there was no evidence, i found no evidence whatsoever that the economic relationship of the chest nut n c-2 and the lombard corridor had any relationship at all. >> thank you.

>> good evening, commissioners, my name is carol miller and i'm a san francisco resident and a former marina resident, for many years, i've seen many neighborhoods erode as retail has moved in, if more chains like pet food express are allowed to move in, the appeal of shopping in the marina would diminish markedly for me, i would be disappointed if pet food express were to come in one block away and squeeze these stores out of business, please keep the diversity on chest nut street and protect the business thaz are integral to the marina, please deny the permit for the pet food express lombard location, and i did just also want to note that these stores on chest nut and

i'm not sure, i'm not familiar with the union street store, they have always provided this high quality premium food that pet food express espouses to being the only ones who carry, that's how i heard it. anyway, thank you so much. >> thank you. >> h i my name's allen mccarthy and i'm against pet food express coming in because you will lose small stores. thank you. >> thank you. >> good afternoon, my name is boris raymond, san francisco resident. while the opening of pet food express, i would like to focus on pfe has been renting lot 14 for more than three years, i don't know the exact figures, i can't imagine the amount being other than astronomical, why is this company could vetting a piece of land that they have already been denied abing says to, they have a store open one

mile away, the answer is simple, advertising, the appeal of having a store off the 101 is evidence, it would be the best kind of advertising other than a play during the super bowl, they're a company that is in the business of business, not contributing to the communities. why are they paying inordinate sums for an empty lot when the money could be further funding other businesses and non-profits, their desire to open the store specifically on lombard is why they shouldn't be allowed to have one, their goal is purely a strategic plat to market their brand, it would not be not hurtful to existing businesses, all their services are already available, and by the pet food express one mile away in california. this project is first and

foremost about expand ago brand and should be self-evident that the unbending desire to open the store is a cause for suspicion and i urge you to deny the permit for doing so. thank you. >> good afternoon. my name's trisha principay, if pet food express is allowed to continue the expansion of their empire in san francisco, we independent store owners whose livelihoods are therefore jeopardized and who live and work here in the city and spend our income in the city will not be able to compete with the pet food express big box store buying power, and if we go under, there will no longer be a choice of where san franciscans and its visitors

can shop for pet food and supplies, small stores make our city unique and special. we're not a city of strip malls, at least not yet, please don't jeopardize our livelihoods as independent store owners, we work hard to build our business and maintain our businesses. we love our stores and the people and cats that we serve, please deny the permit to pet food express. thank you. >> thank you. >> as the next speaker comes up, i'll call more names. (calling speaker names). >> my name is lisa erikson and i've lived in the neighborhood for 29 years and i wanted to speak up in favor of the character of the community and the neighborhood and oppose the project. i think the character of our neighborhood enhances all the neighborhoods and the city itself and i also do note for

customers who prefer the pricing that pet food express can offer can go 12 box, park and get whatever they need. >> thank you. >> hi, my name's tony and i'm an owner at [inaudible] pet store and i want to read a letter, dear planning commission, we would like to add our voice in opposition to the pet food express application, we note the following, this is not an underserved area for pet supplies, it's not even an underserved area for pet food express which has a location with a parking lot 15 blocks away, pet food express is in the tradition of many chain operations, their research shows it is cheaper to open in a well served commercial area and approach customers from existing businesses than to locate in an unserved

neighborhood and build customer base from skafp, there are 9 existing pet store business nz the area, pet food express will have an immediate negative impact on those retailers, sales will cause job losses and store closings, we would argue that this is a bad deal for that neighborhood, it will be felt largely by [inaudible] studies done in san francisco and across the country consistently show that in independent businesses reinvest in their local community at 2.5 to three times the rate of chains, this is not just trading one pet store for another, it's hurting merchants whose contribution tos the contribute, economic and culture have greater than pet food express will ever be, thank you for your

consideration, heart lan don, thank you. >> thank you. >> hello, my name is brenda baxter, i live on lombard street about a block away from this proposed location and i don't own any businesses and i'm not a member of any association, i just consider myself lombard street my home and i consider that my community and we dealt with this four years ago and we as a community said that we didn't want to have a pet food express at this location and as with many i neighbor, i thought this was done, i had no idea for all these years, pet food express left this building vacant and has contributed to the blight in my neighborhood, while they've been doing this, i have in my neighborhood a pet food express that's five minutes away from where i live and that i can go to and that i can shop on a regular basis, i think it's obvious that they're not actively parts of our community and the community's already served by a pet food express. thank you so much.

>> thank you. >> my name is lynette cast loamy, i work at lombard pet hospital for 12 years, i would like to read a portion of mr. lynch's letter for the planning commission. dear commissioners, for the past 50 years, i have been the owner of lombard pet hospital which is located one blood from this proposed project, i voice my opposition strongly in 2009 and i'm disappointed that in such a short time, this large corporation has left this location vacant for four years and is trying again after the neighborhood has spoken to strongly against the project then and now. pet food express offers at itsz location quick vaccinations in their parking elates, this is unsafe practice for all animals should be discouraged by the city of san francisco, animals can have a serious reaction to

vaccines and also important is the relationship and history a veterinarian builds with their owner and their pet, please don't reward this unsafe practice and disregard for the neighborhood. thank you. >> thank you. my name's ann gardener and i have three dogs and i have gotten them vaccinated at pet food express, it's indoor, it's not in the parking lot and they had been checked out by their vet originally. i live in pacific heights, i often go to marine county and i would like to frequent lombard street pfe on my way back into town, i already shop at the walgreens there for convenience and for the opportunity to visit the chest nut street stores, especially marina meats, i cannot afford to do the bulk of my shopping at petite pet stores but i still

go in from time to time, i was in three past stores when i was asked to sign a petition against pst, neither store had what i needed nor had the clerks heard of the product, in the most recent case, it was washable pee pads because one of my dogs lost the use of her hind leg, the manager of the california street pse, she not only gave me a discount but offered to give me a full discount, it was very challenging to have a large handicapped dog and her kindness met the world to me, i had attended the meeting about pse coming into the par rena and i had hoped for a constructive conversation about how the stores can co-exist and i still hope for that.

at that time, it was a very decisive, rude, i felt on part of the porters of the marina pet boutiques but i hope at the end of this, we can all work together and i would like to patronize everybody. thank you. >> thank you, as the next speaker comes up, i'll call more names. (calling speaker names). >> good afternoon, commissioner, my name is rainy defeld, i've been a marina resident for the last 36 year and is a merchant on lombard street, ask i live on that terrible part of lombard so i walk by the proposed site of pet food express every day, i would like to give a list of the businesses that closed, the

kelly's, the grove, 20 year, the beauty store, 20 years, smash, 17 years, sq, 15 years, chadwick of london, 10 years, cheaters eye wear, 4 years, rainwater, laundromat, approximately 20 year, splendid interiors, five years, the general store, approximately 4 years, i'm sure i've forgotten some, but i walk by those empty store fronts every day, some have left on their own or relocated, six store fronts are now vacant, five have been taken over by formula retail often taking two store fronts which happened with a formula retail coming in which took my store plus the store that was next to me for street impact, this is not progression, this is being pushed out of the shopping districts that all of us together had shaped, small

businesses already have to face retail sales deluded by online retailers, plus high cost of doing business, san francisco taxes and special thing that is we give our employees, the values that san francisco has always held made this a special place to live and work. we have always supported our small independent merchants and that is what we should do today. tourists come not only for the sights, they come for the experience and the uniqueness that we have in our stores and neighborhoods, we should not lose that character, this is not free commerce, this is unfair competition for our stores. thank you very much. >> thank you. >> good afternoon, commissioners, my name's lynette spaoeg l, third generation, third generation business owner, i own [inaudible] pet stores, and our city is charming and beautiful

because of all the small businesses in san francisco, and your lombard street being empty for four years is ugly, it's really ugly and i don't think they should be rewarded for keeping that space open for four years. it's ugly, it's gross, i completely oppose of them. thank you. >> good evening, my name's liz froman, i'm here to speak on behalf of pet food express, i've been involved with lab rescue for many years, pet food express has supported our organization for many years, we get two to five labs [inaudible] in many ways, pet food express has supported us over the past few years has saved us a lot of money, that

way we can help the dog's special needs, many of these older dogs get much exposure and end up being adopted in their adoption events, they will get back to us with an answer if they can help, i have always been impressed with their business model. we know they will deliver on what they will say they do for lab rescue, not only am i involved with golden gate lab rescue, but i compete with larger companies every day and i have been very successful for 16 year, there is room for all of us, i am a believer that everybody has to do part in their community with the business they live in. keeping this model in mind, the chest nut district/the city would be making the wrong decision to not allow pet food express to move into the lombard location, they would be not only turning away an asset to the rescue community but the business community. thanks for your time.

>> hi there, my name is linda las ki and i'm a third generation san francis scan and i'm a veterinarian technician for over 35 years, we are unable to stock a lot of food due to the small size of the clinics so im's imperative where we can send people to get a different variety of food and one of the things that i value that pet food express does is they're trying to convert to getting foods that are manufactured in the united states to try to prevent a lot of the tainted foods that come in and has to be recalled and causes injury to the animals. they are a caring organization that really is community minded. in my neighborhood where i live, if i walk four blocks one

way, there's a small boutique pet store, if i walk two blocks the other way, there's a pet food express. they both kind of cover different things, you know, if you want a boutique pet store, they often will not have room for food as well. they might have very expensive beds and things like that. i think that it's important to, you know, be able to have both things and they cover different types of products. i can usually buy a lot of my products at pet food express. i don't think a company should be penalized for the great work they do, they should be rewarded and i ask you to listen to the merchants as well as the people. thank you. >> hello, commissioner, my name is em rocket and i am a small business owner and resident in

san francisco. i am the owner and publisher of a monthly newspaper for dog lovers called bay woof, pet food express has been an advertiser with me since i started the paper in 2007. pet food express, they are one of the few companies of stores of any type who put their money where their mouth is and that they not only donate all of the food to sfn or care control, most of the food to sfspca but they support organizations in a multitude of way, one of the ways they supported me in my small business is during these difficult economic types, they purchased initially advertising in addition to their regular ads and gave it to other rescue organizations, it had none of their logos on it, as part of

the community that also supports the animal, almost all of the ads placed are for their rescues and non-profits, i'm showing there an ad that's in the current issue of this month's paper that is a support of their customers that help them raise millions of dollars for their resent fundraiser for the police dogs. i believe that it's a very sensitive position for me to be in because i hope to support small businesses, small stores as well, and i feel like this city can be a home to all types of stores and i hope that pet food express is able to open the store. thank you. >> hi, my name is erica ortega, i'm a manager at pet food

express, i raise my son here along with my three cats and a dog. pet food express has provided me with the opportunity to earn a living wage. it allows me to remain here where i'm from and that's no small thing considering how expensive it is here. all of my animals are rescues, i mention that because i love this city and this city is a city of people has love their pets. pet food express consistently demonstrates a commitment to rescue groups and is not only a passion of mine but it's a passion of many, many people that live here. a location on lombard street would be nothing but a benefit to this community, i'm a believer in small business, i believe in options and i do not believe in sklaous s*ift, i don't believe in shopping in one place. i think that there is a market large enough for everyone to co-exist here, and to be

profitable and to benefit everyone that lives here. thank you. >> hello, my name is will santana, i'm with vip pet care, we first partnered with pet express 19 years ago to provide affordable service inside pet food express locations, our clinics are an hour and a half long one time a week, we do not refer out to all potashes, we limit what we do to preventive vet services such as vaccinations and microchip, the majority of our clients are those that could not otherwise afford private services, we ask you for your support to allow pet food express to open on lombard street so we can be able to provide these services for people who thaoed them in the community. >> i'll call a few more names. (calling speaker names).

>> hi, my name's ann lewis, i'm a lifetime dog owner, i wholeheartedly support the opening of pet food express on lombard street and i thank [inaudible] bullying tactics of the merchant associations and small shop owners, i go out of my way to support san francisco small business. i shop at the animal connection on both washington and chest nut and will continue to support them if pet food exprez opens on lombard, however, there's both the room and the need in this community for a store like pet food express, iet assist company that gives back and offers a novel convenience of parking.

i can't do that on chest nut street, so now my tax dollars are going to marine county, i would rather they go to san francisco. i would rather not to go to marine to buy my ten cases of dog food, and a little thing like a parking lot makes that easier, supporting this is good for the economy, good for the community and most importantly, it's good for the groups that work tirelessly to find homes for the city's lost animals so now youz as a board have an opportunity to do what's right, don't reward the bullies but rather reward the free market, reward the other small business thaz will benefit from having a retail anchor stror on lombard street, reward the consumers that want business in that space and reward pet food exz press and michael levy that grew from a milgts guy to a big

guy and opened a store that people liked, thank you. >> good afternoon, commissioners, i don't envy your jobs. my name's jonathan parsons, i live in the marina neighborhood and i'm disabled, i had to cut in line, i'm sorry, because i really have to leave, i'm very much against pfe coming to lombard street as well as all my neighbors around me are who couldn't come because they're on vacation, and they already have three stores here, there on california, you heard the story over and over again, there's been a decision made in 2009 and i'm not going to waste anymore of your time, thank you very much. >> my name is yvonne valencia,

i have a catering business in san francisco, i sponsor small businesses and pet food express sponsored my business since 2006. we serve breakfast for the managers and its employees, they *f this time they open a small business, so i sponsor them too. so, thank you. >> good afternoon, commissioner, my name is andre, i'm a general manager of i print and e-mail, we're a print and e-mail company based here in san francisco. we are a certified small business and minority owned business through the city's owned human rights commission. our owners are long-time residents of san francisco and 90% of our nroibacker employees work and live in the city as well, we have worked with michael and pet food express for over 20 years, over the year, we witnessed what good

they bring to the community, they make the local economy more vibrant, they bring a lot of good will to the city's residents and pet owners, you have heard a lot of their testimonies today. in short, i support pet food express in this application, it's a darn fine company that had its humble beginnings in san francisco and to this day, they still continue maintaining their deep root ins the city and its communities. thank you. >> commissioneress, my name is jennifer ferries and i'm here on the merchant's association to voice our strong opposition to granting this conditional use permit to pet food express, formula retail must be necessary and desirable in order to get this permit, then i'm not really sure why we're still talking about this after four years with 21 locations within 20 miles and another

store barely a mile away, this won't add anything unique or necessary to the neighborhood, much of what makes us a great city is the diversity and character of our small businesses. the entry of another major big box store will harm the existing small businesses and the livelihoods of their employees and owners, we want you to protect them and deny this permit again. thank you. >> good evening, commissioners, i'm eric messier smith, i live in the marina for over 23 years, i'll go down to cal fawner ya store or drive my truck down to market and that's a distance and i live in the marina, this location is closer, it's more convenient, i'm also very familiar with lombard strt,